Until the fat lady started to sing
Saw a Youtube clip of a lady on a U.K. talent show. A lovely lady, plain and nervous. (not fat)
The audience had low expectations, until she sang! That and the common expression, it ain't over till the fat lady sings got me thinking.
The vibrations wash like waves upon the shore
Enter through her toes and run up to her mind
They explode within the cavities of her brain
Her nerves are all on edge, confidence much maligned
She's made it to the final
And she's standing in the wing
No one gave her any chance
Until the fat lady started to sing
She can feel the tension building, pressure rising in her head
She's waiting for the tsunami to hit the sand
That note she knew was coming, she can hear it getting closer
The beat starts to move the fingers of her hand
She's made it to the final
And she's standing in the wing
No one gave her any chance
Until the fat lady started to sing
The crash cymbal heralds the opening, that belied the melody
She breathes in deeply, oiling her vocal cords
The audience knows it's Nessun Dorma, it's a Pavarotti parody
The singer powers through the song, the mistress of the boards
She beat everyone in the final
Given the chance to do her thing
Now everyone's a patron
Once the fat lady started to sing
Comments
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Very good lyrics, @sidshovel. The lines flow well. Nice work!
The lines I liked the most were:
She can feel the tension building, pressure rising in her head
She's waiting for the tsunami to hit the sand
That note she knew was coming, she can hear it getting closer
The beat starts to move the fingers of her hand
"It ain't over till the fat lady sings..." has always been an interesting colloquialism. I recall first hearing that phrase when I was a lad watching Monday Night Football in the US in the mid 70s. One year, the color commentator was a former NFL quarterback named Don Meredith. If the game was close near the end, he would often say, "It ain't over till the fat lady sings..." LOL!
Cheers,
Joseph
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Thank you Joseph,
I must admit to hearing that the phrase originated in American sport commentary.
It is however, much earlier than that and has a degree of plausability about it.
Apparently, at the start of the steamboat era, English sailors referred to the boiler as "the fat lady".
Now here's the interesting bit, ship's crews were given shore leave. Most headed for the bars around the ports.
When it came close to the ships leaving port and shore leave ending, sailors moved to bars closer to ship's dock in order to drink to the very last minute before boarding.
When the boiler was fired up and reached maximum pressure ready for departure, the engineer diverted some steam through the ship's horn. The signal to board immediately.
Hence, "it ain't over, (shore leave), till the fat lady, (boiler) sings (horn sounds).
I grew up in Liverpool and my father was a docker, he used this expression a lot, so I'm inclined to believe it's true!
Thanks again
Sid
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@sidshovel wrote:
I must admit to hearing that the phrase originated in American sport commentary.
It is however, much earlier than that and has a degree of plausability about it.
Yes, that's correct. Note that I didn't say it originated in American sport commentary. I said that I recall first hearing that phrase when I was a lad watching football. 😀 Likewise, the first time I heard the phrase "cold front" was when I was five and watching the adorable weather lady on television... but she didn't invent the term. 😀 Wow, was she nice to look at and listen to though! 😀
Cheers,
Joseph
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Don't tell me! That's were you got the moniker icystorm from?????????
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LOL!!! 😂🤣
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